Lang T
Centre for Food Policy, Wolfson Institute of Health Sciences, Thames Valley University, Ealing, London, UK.
Proc Nutr Soc. 1999 May;58(2):335-43. doi: 10.1017/s0029665199000452.
The present paper explores possible implications of the globalization of the food system for diet and health. The paper poses five key questions to clarify the relationship between food and globalization. The first question is what is globalization. The paper suggests that it is helpful to distinguish between economic, political, ideological and cultural processes. Globalization is also marked by internal oppositional dynamics: there are re-localization and regional tendencies which counter the global. The second question is whether there is anything new about globalization. Food has been a much traded commodity for millennia. The paper concludes that what is new about the current phases of globalization is the pace and scale of the change, and the fact that power is being concentrated into so few hands. New marketing techniques and supply-chain management consolidate these features. The third question is who is in control of the globalization era and who benefits and loses from the processes of globalization. It is argued that modern food economies are hypermarket rather than market economies, with power accruing to the distributor more than has been recognized. The fourth question concerns governance of the food system. Historically, systems of local and national government have regulated the food supply where appropriate. Now, new international systems are emerging, partly using existing bodies and partly creating new ones. The final question is of the future. Globalization is a value-laden area of study, yet its implications for dietary change and for health are considerable. The paper argues that dimensions of change can be discerned, although it would be rash to bet on which end of each dimension will emerge as dominant in the 21st century.
本文探讨了食品系统全球化对饮食与健康可能产生的影响。本文提出了五个关键问题，以厘清食品与全球化之间的关系。第一个问题是全球化是什么。本文认为区分经济、政治、意识形态和文化进程是有益的。全球化还具有内部对立动态特征：存在重新地方化和区域化趋势，这些趋势与全球化趋势背道而驰。第二个问题是全球化是否有新的特点。几千年来，食品一直是交易频繁的商品。本文的结论是，当前全球化阶段的新特点在于变化的速度和规模，以及权力集中在极少数人手中这一事实。新的营销技巧和供应链管理强化了这些特征。第三个问题是谁掌控着全球化时代，谁在全球化进程中受益，谁受损。有人认为，现代食品经济是大卖场经济而非市场经济，权力向经销商的集中程度超出了人们的认知。第四个问题涉及食品系统的治理。从历史上看，地方和国家政府体系在适当的时候对食品供应进行监管。如今，新的国际体系正在形成，部分借助现有机构，部分创建新的机构。最后一个问题是关于未来。全球化是一个充满价值判断的研究领域，但其对饮食变化和健康的影响相当大。本文认为可以辨别出变化的维度，尽管贸然猜测在21世纪每个维度的哪一端将占据主导地位是轻率的。
